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Only 28% of Taiwan startups making profits

Mark Tsai, Taipei; Joseph Tsai, DIGITIMES

Tuesday 17 September 2019

In a report composed jointly by governmental Small and Medium Enterprise Administration, PwC Taiwan and Taiwan Institute of Economic Research noted that about 20% of startups in Taiwan have not yet generated any revenues, and 50% have. Most of the startups are suffering from losses and only 28% are profitable.

The report also showed that diversified capital channels, tax concessions and connection with international market resources are the top-3 major kinds of support that startups hope the Taiwan government can offer. The startups' top-3 target markets are China, Southeast Asia/India and North America.

Joseph Chou, chairman and CEO of PwC Taiwan, pointed out that many startup incubation organizations have been aggressively assisting newly formed companies to find the right markets and to enter these markets with their patents protected. So far, failing to be internationalized is the biggest issue for these Taiwan's startups, Chou said.

Violet Lo, director of PwC Taiwan's Innovation and Entrepreneur Services, Markets and Business Development, noted that in addition to technology and market development, risk management, regulation compliance, finance control and system establishment are also important factors that startups need to work on.

The report also indicated that most entrepreneurships in northern Taiwan are related to smart medical care, digital media, Internet of Things (IoT) and e-commerce, while in central Taiwan, the industries include smart manufacturing, green-energy technologies and new agriculture. For southern Taiwan, green-energy technologies and IoT are more popular.

The coronavirus outbreak has disrupted production and weakened consumer confidence, with all ICT sectors bracing for major declines in shipments. Digitimes Research has conducted analyses on three mobile device sectors, namely notebooks, smartphones and tablets in the wake of the outbreak.